LetterAgent
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A customer letter should say what happened, what you are doing about it, and what the customer should do next, in that order and in plain words. Apologies, updates, and goodwill notes all follow the same rule: lead with the customer's concern, not your explanation.
Start with the apology, not the backstory. "We are sorry your order arrived late" beats three paragraphs about supply chains, because the customer already knows something went wrong and wants to know you know it too. Then state plainly what happened, in one or two sentences, without blaming a carrier, a system, or the customer. Then say what you are doing to fix it: a replacement, a refund, a credit, or a corrected shipment, with a date if you can give one. Close with a direct contact: a name, a phone number, and an email address, so the customer does not have to hunt for help. The most common mistake is the non-apology: "We regret any inconvenience" sounds legal and cold, and customers read it as exactly that. Say sorry, say what happened, say what happens now.
| Letter type | Open with | Must include |
|---|---|---|
| Apology | A direct apology for the specific problem | The fix and a contact name |
| Service update | What is changing and when | Whether the customer must act |
| Goodwill note | Thanks for a specific purchase or milestone | No sales pitch in the same letter |
| Recall or safety notice | The product and the risk, plainly | Exact return or repair steps |
Updates fail when they bury the change. Put the change in the first paragraph: what is changing, when it takes effect, and whether the customer needs to do anything. Everything else is detail. If prices, hours, or terms change, give the old and new facts side by side so the customer can compare at a glance. If no action is needed, say so in bold terms: "You do not need to do anything" prevents a wave of worried calls. For a recall or safety notice, be even plainer: name the product, describe the problem in ordinary words, and give numbered steps for return or repair. Safety letters are not the place for brand voice; clarity is the brand voice. Keep a copy of every update letter you send, with the mailing date, so you can show what customers were told and when.
Goodwill notes work best when they are not tied to a sale: a thank-you after a first order, a note marking a customer's anniversary with your business, or a short message after a problem was resolved well. The note should be short, personal, and free of offers: adding a discount code turns a goodwill note into an ad, and the customer can tell which one you meant. Handwriting the signature, even on a typed letter, adds warmth without much effort. Small businesses have an edge here: a note from the owner, by name, beats a printed form letter from a large company every time. One caution: do not send goodwill notes to customers who have asked not to be contacted, or who have an open complaint you have not resolved. A cheerful note landing in the middle of an unresolved problem reads as tone-deaf.
Use the customer's mailing address as they gave it, and check it before posting: customer letters returned as undeliverable waste postage and leave the customer uninformed. Keep sensitive details out of the letter itself: no full account numbers, passwords, or payment details on paper. Refer customers to a secure channel for anything sensitive. In the US, standard letters travel at standard postage; in Canada, domestic customer mail follows the same pattern, with cross-border letters at the higher US rate. LetterAgent prints letters on 8.5x11 paper in a double-window envelope and mails to US and Canadian addresses from a chat with your AI assistant, with the price quoted up front and approved by you first, which suits small businesses sending one-off customer letters without an office printer.
Ready to mail it? Send your letter with LetterAgent: describe it to your AI assistant, approve the exact quoted price, and it is printed and mailed.
LetterAgent is a working name. Prices include print, postage, and our service fee. US prices in USD, Canadian prices in CAD (Canadian prices exclude applicable sales tax, added at checkout). Currently in private testing.
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